A clogged toilet bowl or drain lines associated with a toilet can result in overflow from the toilet bowl when the toilet is flushed. Needless to say, overflow, when it occurs, is aggravating, messy and unsanitary.
As will be seen below, the apparatus disclosed and claimed herein positively prevents flushing of a toilet when desired. The flush mechanism of the toilet is deactivated through use of a lock disposed externally of the toilet tank, the flush handle being prevented from operation by the lock. When the handle is locked against movement, flush mechanism within the toilet tank is engaged to prevent lowering of a float associated with the flush water inlet valve control assembly so that water cannot enter the tank. The apparatus may be utilized with flush systems employing either lever arm floats or slide floats and the apparatus may readily be configured for utilization with different flush mechanisms.
The following patents are considered representative of the current state of the prior art in this field. U.S. Pat. No. 5,117,513, U.S. Pat. No. 4,433,445, U.S. Pat. No. 5,544,368, U.S. Pat. No. 4,485,501, U.S. Pat. No. 5,459,884, U.S. Pat. No. 4,356,576, U.S. Pat. No. 3,719,957, U.S. Pat. No. 4,351,071, U.S. Pat. No. 3,095,577, U.S. Pat. No. 3,296,630, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,117,556. Most of the patents relate to mechanisms which allow adjustment of the amount of water flushed. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,358,294 and 4,319,368 relate to latches or locks which cooperate with existing toilet flush levers to prevent flushing of a toilet, for example by an infant. These devices are employed as adjuncts to the existing toilet handles and do not cooperate directly in any manner with the internal flush mechanism of the toilet, in the manner of the subject invention which ensures that water will not enter the toilet tank through the flush water inlet valve.